Helping to further pave the way for a planned residential subdivision of the former Mt. Victoria Farm at the top of Macaulay Hill, the iconic red barns – built in the early 20s – will be razed within the next two months. This following last week’s Town approval of a demolition permit requested by John Norris on behalf of the family estate. Said Mayor Michael Elliott, in an exclusive interview with Your Local Journal on Tuesday, “For sure, it marks the end of an era. But after researching all the options, and with no private funds forthcoming, it really is the only possible outcome.” The Town, he added, had unsuccessfully approached the Quebec Ministry of Agriculture last year requesting whether funds were available to renovate and restore the barns at an estimated cost of about $350,000. The answer was the same from the Federal Government two years ago. “We did what we could to try and save the barns which have been in really bad shape for several years now and were becoming a serious danger hazard,” said Elliott. “And even if we had been successful, what could we have really done with them at taxpayer’s expense for the benefit of the community as a whole? Then we received the request for a demolition permit from John Norris on behalf of the family estate and it was a no-brainer.” Plans call for the 30-acre site to be subdivided into eight or 10 residential lots, with 10 per cent of the space being automatically ceded to the Town either in land or its monetary value.
Writen by: James Parry, Printed in the Your Local Journal
